Disclaimers: I don't own anything.
A/N: I really like this story and I'm excited!
Chapter Two
"Papers?"
Emma Swan and The Queen stood there in the middle of the dining hall. Regina had just showed the blonde some of the grounds of her home and they have yet to go upstairs when the brunette asked the question. The blonde tilted her head then shook it.
"Oh! Right. Papers. Here you are."
Emma pulled out two brown pieces of paper that were together and handed them to Regina. The brunette looked at Emma carefully then unfolded them and began to read. It was the King's servant hand writing. The man would often write papers for him and all the King would have to do is seal it and sign it. She looked at the bottom for the signature and there was her husband's hand writing. Regina folded them and handed it back to the blonde which Emma took and placed in her back pocket. The Queen turned and started walking past Emma rudely.
"I do not need your help Miss Swan and I certainly don't need protection."
Emma followed behind, "It looks like you do if the King has gone out of his way to protect you."
"He does not want to protect me."
"He wouldn't if he didn't care-"
"Care?" Regina interrupted Emma turning around sharply. They had walked up the large staircase and were now standing in a hall way with rooms upon rooms on each side, "Care, Miss Swan? He has simply hired you so that he can keep an eye on me."
The blonde looked at the Queen standing there listening to her intently. To Emma it sounded like a lot of people always just listened but not really took the time to actually care about what the Queen was saying. People have always been scared of her.
Regina continued, "So I do not need protection, Miss Swan it is you who needs the protection from me."
The brunette turned and headed down the hallway again. Emma quickened her pace to catch up to angered woman.
"Wait." Emma called out.
Regina sighed and turned around. The blonde continued, "Give me one chance to prove myself to you. Go to that woman's ball tomorrow night, let me come with you and show you that I can protect you." Emma was desperate now, she hasn't interacted with humans a lot since she died ten years ago and it was a lot harder than she thought to get back into it.
Regina stepped forward into Emma's personal space, "I know your type Miss Swan. Always looking for the right moment to save the damsel and act all shy and stupid. Being so chivalrous and always putting yourself into the line of fire. Oh," the brunette placed her hand on her heart speaking sarcastically now, "but how thoughtful of the King to give me such a strong woman as you." Regina's face fell flat again and walked away leaving the blonde behind. Regina opened a large door then entered the room slamming it behind her.
Emma dropped her shoulders and sighed. This was going to be a lot harder than she thought. Ingrid appeared out of Emma's body and stood beside the blonde, finally letting herself be known.
"Isn't she just the warm welcome hostess?" Ingrid said crossing her arms.
The blonde knight looked at her, "She'll warm up to me I know it."
"I keep hearing about this Swan charm you're always talking about. Was that it?"
"Very funny."
"I have a bad feeling about her Emma and I think we should just leave now."
"We just got here and I'm not going to back down on a promise I made to the Queen. You break those kinds of promises you get your head chopped off."
"News flash Emma you're already dead."
"UN-dead. There is a difference."
As they were talking back and forth in the middle of the hallway the King had walked to the blonde but stopped as he noticed the knight talking to herself. King Leopold looked over with a raised eyebrow in confusion at his servant that was following behind him and the servant was holding two towels and a brush with a bar of soap. They couldn't hear or see Ingrid, the blonde's spirit friend. Emma was the only one that could as far as they knew.
Emma placed her hands on her hips, "That was one time Ingrid, one-"
The King cleared his throat, "Ahem."
The blonde jumped and turned around. She quickly bowed as she saw who it was, "Oh your Grace I am so sorry!" Emma's faced turned red with embarrassment. The King simply laughed and walked over closer to her.
"I hope you don't always talk to yourself. Knight Swan I presume?"
Emma stepped forward as well and stuck her hand out to shake the King's hand. He shook the blonde's hand and Emma nodded.
"That would be me."
"And I see you have met my wife, the Queen."
Emma nodded at that as well. King Leopold didn't seem too pleased when he said that and it made the woman slightly mad at him for having such a tone about Regina. Ingrid was still standing there next to Emma examining the King.
"I bet he beds other women." Ingrid gave a disapproving shake of her head.
The knight simply smiled and spoke in her head, 'Go away Ingrid.'
"I bet he gets his servants to-"
Emma laughed interrupting her ghostly friend, "Well your majesty if you don't mind I'd like to walk around your castle some more and get familiar with it."
The man smiled widely, "Perfect! I'm growing quite fond of you already. Harris!" The King called to his servant that was next to him.
The man bowed and had a shaky voice, "Yes your highness?"
"Show this knight her quarters. I placed you close by so you can keep an eye on the Queen."
Emma paused for a moment then tilted her head in confusion, "An eye sir?"
He laughed, "Why yes of course!" The man lowered his voice, "I think she plans on killing me so I want you to report to me if she is doing anything suspicious."
The blonde was in shock. Regina was right about the King. He hired her not for protection for the brunette but for his on protection. Emma just laughed back awkwardly as he patted her shoulder roughly and then walked down the hallway.
His servant smiled at Emma, "This way, Knight Swan."
They walked a few doors down the hallway and Emma looked down to the door where the Queen entered. She was really close to Regina's room which Emma was happy about but she could feel that Ingrid wasn't so happy. The servant opened the door for her and she walked in. The room was quaint and more than adequate for the blonde and she noticed that there was a closet for clothing and a wash room as well as a bed and a fire place. Harris placed the things he was carrying on the bed and bowed to Emma.
"I hope everything looks alright."
Emma nodded, "Yes of course, thanks."
He smiled and bowed again, "If you need anything just let one of us know. There are a few other knights that live down this hallway that we attend to. One's that is higher in the order. It's refreshing to have a woman as a guard." He quietly added.
The blonde watched him leave the room and shut the door behind him. Emma let out a long breath that she felt like she was holding and sat down on her bed. Ingrid appeared seconds later by the fire place and ran her hand against the stone wall.
"So the King is afraid of his Queen."
Emma rolled her eyes, "Warn me next time when the King is behind me okay? He probably thinks I'm crazy and I don't need the whole palace to think I'm crazy and that I'm talking to a ghost."
"But you are talking to a ghost."
"Ingrid." Emma said sternly.
The other blonde woman walked over to Emma and sat down next to her, "I have a bad feeling about this…Queen. I can feel darkness around her-"
"I know, I know. Just give me one week okay? If you still think we should really leave then we will leave." Emma looked into Ingrid's blue eyes, "I want to find who killed my family I really do. But how can we if we go from town to town by over hearing what people are saying and not actually talking to them? There are a lot of people here. Surely we can find someone who knows about dark magic and circle sacrifices."
The blue eyed woman shook her head and sighed. Emma just smiled her best smile and scooted towards the other woman.
"Please?" Emma batted her eye lashes and clasped her fingers together.
Ingrid couldn't resist the blonde. They have been together for so long that Ingrid has grown to really like Emma and there small adventures together. Ingrid liked Emma, more than she was willing to admit to herself but the blonde didn't need to know that. The spirit tried not to smile but failed and gave half of a smile.
"Alright, fine."
Emma tried hugging Ingrid but failed going right through her body and landed on the floor. The other blonde woman burst out laughing at the knight. Emma groaned and carefully got back up on the bed.
"I keep forgetting you're a ghost."
Ingrid stood up and slowly started to fade, "Come on and let us see more of this castle."
The green eyed knight rubbed the side of her arm as she followed Ingrid, "I completely got you with my Swan charm."
"Regina, where is my ring?"
The brunette was sitting in her chair looking at a large mirror as she brushed her dark brown locks. She wore a black night gown that ended at her ankles but had slips on both sides revealing her smooth legs. It was night and she had stayed in her room for the most part of the day after speaking with her blonde guard. The only time she went out was for dinner and then to the balcony remembering that she wanted to end her life there followed by blonde hair shining in the moonlight that caught her attention. She rolled her eyes at her husband, "Did you check your finger?"
The man growled, "Speak ill to me like that again and I'll-"
Regina turned to face him smiling deviously, "Or you'll what? Kill me?"
King Leopold walked to their bed, "You would like that wouldn't you?"
She had no reply for that statement. Regina would like it if the man would kill her already but he had to keep up appearances for other kingdoms and no one likes a dead queen.
In another room of the castle, Emma had the fire place going and had shed her shirt and boots along with her sword leaving her in just a white wrap that was wrapped tightly around her chest and her brown pants. Ingrid was lying on the bed up against the head board as she watched the blonde pace back and forth now. Ingrid wasn't stupid as to not notice how strong and toned the blonde's body was. Emma had told her once that she helped her father with a small farm and all the heavy lifting came in handy when it came to sword fighting.
Emma rubbed her face and sighed, "did you see the looks on their faces when the King introduced me to them?'
"I did." Ingrid replied back.
"All of those guys laughed when they saw I was a woman like they had never seen a woman as a guard before."
"I know."
"Well I'll show them. I'm just as good if not better at fighting than they are."
"You could defeat a hundred of them."
"That's right I can-" Emma stopped pacing and looked at the woman lying in her bed, "you're just saying that so I'll stop talking."
Ingrid got up and walked over to the knight, "No I'm saying it because it's true."
Emma slowly smiled and breathed in and out of her nose slowly. She needed to calm down and not over react so much. Ingrid knew what she was talking about and Emma trusted her whole hardheartedly.
"Do you really think so?"
The spirit smiled, "I know so. Besides I think that you should-"
Ingrid was interrupted by a loud scream. Emma's senses heightened and she looked around to see where it came from. It sounded from a distance but it was still in the castle. The blonde knight and her spirit walked out the door and looked down the hallway to the left and right. No one else was coming out of their rooms to investigate.
Ingrid frowned, "Maybe it was from outside."
Emma shook her head, "No it was from in here."
They both kept looking around and walking slowly down the hallway when they finally heard some muffled noises coming from a room a couple doors down. Emma looked at Ingrid and the woman nodded, she knew what to do so she walked through the door entering the room first. Emma waited there patiently at the door waiting for her friend to come back out.
When Ingrid finally reappeared in front of Emma her face fell, "You need to go in there, Emma, now." She said quickly and stepped away from the door.
Emma nodded and turned the door knob but it was locked. She tried again but it still wouldn't open. The blonde knight stepped back a few feet and then went charging at it with all her force. She placed her arms in front of her face when the door broke and splinters from it went flying. She heard a gasp from a girl that was on the floor in the middle of the bedroom. The little one was crying and had a fresh bruised eye. Emma then looked at the man that was standing in front of the little girl in just his pants and shirt with his belt loose.
Ingrid's soul shook and she knew what was going to happen next. She shook her head holding her hand out, "Emma, wait."
The blonde didn't listen to her as she quickly grabbed the man's shirt and threw him out of the room. The guy landed on the opposite of the hallway landing on his back against the window and making it crack. There were some people who had gathered outside when they heard a loud noise and gasped as they saw the man being thrown from his room so forcefully.
Regina had awoken from all of the noise and walked out of her bedroom about to yell at whoever woke her up but then she saw Emma charging at one of her captains and grabbing his collar and punching his face repeatedly. The brunette walked over to the scene and then two men ran over and separated the two that were fighting. Emma spit on the ground in front of the man.
"Don't you think about touching her again!"
Emma yelled out to him as they rushed him to the infirmary. The blonde then pushed off whoever was holding her. Ingrid didn't dare say anything to Emma, afraid that it will only make things worse. Regina walked over to the window and her slippers stepped on the glass which made her look down. She then moved over to the door that had been broken down and a girl still shaking and on the floor. The Queen then looked into Emma's eyes and saw such passion and desire. The blonde then walked over to the girl and picked her up carefully in a bridal carry. Regina watched the woman's arms flex as well as her abs and it sent warmth down her body.
As the blonde approached her the brunette stopped Emma by grabbing her arm, "Did you do this?" Regina asked quietly.
The blonde's breathing came to almost about normal and she could feel the woman's touch on her arm and it wasn't as forceful as she thought it would be, "Yes, your majesty."
Regina couldn't believe the strength that this woman had as she carried the girl and had just broke down a door and beat one of her best captains. Former best captain.
Emma let the girl down carefully away from the glass and next to a larger woman that was in tears and helped the girl onto her feet and took her away whispering how sorry she was. Regina had given glares to the on lookers and they quickly went back into their rooms. Ingrid and Emma shared a look and the blonde spirit nodded understanding that now wasn't the time to talk and went to Emma's chambers. The brunette Queen walked up to Emma and the blonde looked into brown eyes.
Regina wanted to thank the blonde for being so bold but she remembered that she was the Evil Queen and had to keep up her appearances so she spoke flatly, "You'll be wearing what I order you to wear."
The brunette walked past the knight without another word and Emma scrunched her face and turned around towards the woman, "Excuse me?"
Regina stopped and placed her hand on her doorknob taking in a deep breath, "For tomorrow. At the ball. From now on you'll wear the clothes I give you. Understood?"
Emma smiled softly and bowed, "Yes, your majesty."
The Queen took one last look at Emma's abs then nodded and went back into her room cursing herself the whole time for putting down her defenses around Emma.
The blonde smiled to herself knowing what Regina had really meant. It was a thank you for saving that girl. It was a start and Emma had to take it as it was.
It's a start.